


Stay

by nohumanbondthatcompares



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: M/M, Mentions of Prostitution, Mob Boss Alec Lightwood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-05-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:08:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24319342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nohumanbondthatcompares/pseuds/nohumanbondthatcompares
Summary: None of this was his fault anyway. No, this was all on Jace.If he hadn’t been so stubborn, Alec didn’t have to resort to such measures.(Inspired by Penny Dreadful: City of Angels episode 4.)
Relationships: Alec Lightwood/Jace Wayland, Alec Lightwood/Other(s)
Kudos: 42





	Stay

**Author's Note:**

> This idea popped in my head after watching Penny Dreadful: COA 1x04.  
> It didn't leave me until I wrote it.
> 
> Special thanks to kingoriginal for putting up with me.  
> Not beta'd. Mistakes are my own.

“You didn’t have to kill him you know?”

Alec looked down at the man laying down on the bed next to him. The man had his face buried into the pillow, normally meticulously styled blond hair sticking out all over the place, with an arm draped over Alec’s hips.

“He shouldn’t have touched you,” came the mumbled reply, like it was no big deal. Bastard didn’t even bother to open his eyes. In truth, it probably wasn’t a big deal, not to them. Death wasn’t something that was required often but it came with the territory. This one hardly a blip on either of their radars. Still, it ruffled his feathers that there was nothing more coming from the other man. It made Alec want to goad him.

So he did.

“Well, someone had to.”

And he smirked when he finally got the reaction that he wanted. The death glare he was receiving would have sent anyone whimpering. But he wasn’t just anyone. You didn’t get to where he was by backing down at a challenge. And really, none of this was his fault anyway. No, this was all on Jace. If he hadn’t been so stubborn, Alec didn’t have to resort to such measures. The push and pull between them had been going on for a while, almost for as long as Jace had been working for him.

At first it was just banter and teasing. He wanted to break the wall his mother had created. He didn’t want a regular employer and employee relationship between them. He didn’t need another yes man, not when he could see the potential in Jace. The guy was younger than him, younger still when he first came to work for the family, but he was smart. Observant, quick on his feet, analytical and loyal. Jace saw things that on rare occasions that even Alec missed. Maybe it was because part of his job was to make sure he always kept his eyes and ears open. It wasn’t hard for him to see why his mother had brought him in and paid him handsomely for his service.

Jace’s only flaw, from what Alec could tell was, that he only said anything when he was asked. Maybe it was how his mother wanted it, back when Jace was her shadow and not his. Alec knew for a fact that his mother took Jace’s observations into serious consideration, she would not ask otherwise. She was a traditionalist, always trying to keep the major decisions within the family so being asked meant it was a privilege. Whenever Jace was extended that privilege, he gave insightful comments that never let them down. It always impressed him and confused him as to why his mother never ask Jace to share his opinions more.

So, when the organization was passed on to him, and Jace along with it, he wanted it to change. The people Alec trusted outside his family could be counted on one hand, Jace was one of them. Casual greetings turned friendlier. Conversations that were just nods at each other all those years ago, turned into conversations that lasted the entire ride to his destination. And just as his mother had asked for Jace’s input, he did to, even more so than her. Eventually, he stopped having to ask.

Their conversations weren’t the only thing that changed between them. Alec didn’t know when exactly it happened for Jace, but he could tell it did. Jace’s lingering looks, the narrowing of mismatched eyes whenever a man or woman would approach him even when not a threat, the glances from his eyes to his lips. Alec couldn’t even count the times he had seen Jace stare at the rearview mirror longer than strictly needed. He smiled during all of them.

Finding someone who showed interest in a member of the same sex was difficult. It was why Alec had resorted to finding someone on the corner of the street whenever he needed to, where with the right price, no one cared. So, when he saw an opportunity with Jace, he was willing to take it. He wasn’t blind after all. The beauty Jace possessed was the first thing he had ever noticed about the man. Golden hair, mesmerising eyes, and sinful lips. But it was his mind that did Alec in. Smart, funny, resourceful and dedicated. If Jace had an interest, Alec was going to do everything in his power to fulfil both their desires.

But things never really went as planned. His advances were subtle at first. It started with compliments and lingering looks of his own. It then escalated to gentle touches, encouraging words and wanting stares. None of them made a difference. It stirred something in Jace, Alec could tell that much. Jace’s own subtlety seemed to have abandoned ship and became more intense but nothing more came from it. All it did was leave Alec frustrated.

In the end, it became too much for him to handle. He had finally given in one late night, in the privacy of his office. Alec took Jace’s face in his hands and kissed him. He could have sworn peace washed over him as their lips met. For that moment, he was in heaven.

Until he wasn’t.

Jace had pulled away from him. It was with some difficulty, Alec noted. Jace had hesitated. It wasn’t something that he was used to seeing from the other. If nothing else, Jace was always sure of his actions. The both of them were similar in that way. They always went for what they wanted, no second guesses. It could only mean that Jace was reluctant to pull away. Before Alec could even ask, Jace had already had his answer ready. _Your mother wouldn’t want this._

Alec remembered cursing up a storm in his head. His mother. Of course. Jace had been hers for two years. Guarding her instead of him while she was the head of the organization. Even if she was just a place holder, someone to keep things running until he earned his place up top, she needed the best protection. And that was Jace. Alec may have gotten Jace now but his loyalty was still divided. While he was sure that the other would lay his life down for him without a second thought, Alec knew that Jace still respected his mother. Her words carried a lot of weight for the blond, but he never expected her to be become a barrier between them. No argument Alec could make to change the man’s mind.

Things between them took a few steps back after that night. They remained friendly but there was a tension in the air. It was hard to ignore when you spent so much time together in a closed space. Eventually it suffocated Alec. He needed a release. One that he hadn’t needed in all those months he spent chasing after Jace.

All of that was what led him here. On the bed of a no-name motel outside of town, feeling sore in all the right places, smirking at a blond who glaring at him. “If you would have just kissed me back that night at the office, you wouldn’t have had to kill a whore and I could have saved 400 dollars.”

Jace snorted.

“Oh, fuck you,” There was no heat to his words. Things were back as they used to be. Better in fact.

Alec watched as Jace rose on his elbow, facing him. “Maybe next time,” Jace said as he shifted himself, making Alec smile, both at the recollection of what just transpired and the prospect of what could come.

“So there will be a next time?” he couldn’t help but ask, just to make sure.

A hand was pressed to against his neck, thumb brushing his cheek. “No more late-night drop offs. That was the last time. Promise me.” There was a vulnerability in those beautifully mismatched eyes as the words were said. It was yet another thing he wasn’t used to seeing from the blond. But Alec was sure that Jace saw the same in his eyes. They both knew that this would define their relationship from now on and both were willing to bear their souls for it.

“I’ll stay, if you’ll stay.” It was a final chance for them to bow out, to never speak of this again. In that moment Alec knew that was not what he wanted. Even if this relationship was confined to being a secret behind the closed doors of dodgy motels, he would want it. He could only hope it went both ways.

He got his answer when he was pulled down enough for their lips to meet. And once again, peace washed over him. He was in heaven.

This time no one pulled away.


End file.
